A spokesman for Stone-on-Trent City Council said the Chelsea Flower Show activity enabled them to promote the city, its industry and its "enormous potential", to a "highly influential list of key figures from the worlds of government, business, investment and energy".

"The only way we can avoid a continued spiral of decline is to generate new economic growth and wealth to provide the resources the city needs," it said.

"The BBC reported that Chelsea was the UK's biggest networking event for business and commerce. It has significant global reach."